Our friends supplied the food and a fireplace. We teamed up in the kitchen, slicing fruit and bread. Ian used his low-light lens, to great advantage.

I coveted their copper fondue pot, a garage sale find!

It reminded me of an old fondue restaurant in Ocean City, Maryland whose name I have forgotten. It had wooden booths, dim lighting, and you felt like you were in a 1970's ski lodge.

The snow is melting now, aided by a driving rain. This was accompanied by thunder and lightning on my bike ride home from Crossfit earlier this morning. I'm making Momofuku Milk Bar's "birthday cake" for a friends party this weekend, dashi for dinner tonight and contemplating seeing "12 Years a Slave." I finished a pair of socks for Sophie last week, and the first sock of another pair along with a cute hat. I am debating a trip to Rhinebeck NY Sheep and Wool Festival in October (fall color!), but right now the only kind of weather I want is the sunny kind.